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Sensation Loss of Auricle Following Ear Surgery by Post-auricular Incision: Our Experience

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Abstract

Post-auricular incisions used for ear surgeries have their distinct advantages and disadvantages. Numbness in post-auricular region or over pinna is a symptom encountered in many patients following surgery via post-auricular incision. We performed this study to investigate this phenomenon of aural numbness in terms of frequency and severity. Design: Prospective study. Setting: This study was conducted in our hospital from 1st December 2015 to 30th November 2016 for a period of 1 year. The period of analysis was 1 month. Subjects: All patients undergoing surgery via post-auricular incision were included in the study. Methods: All the subjects were subjected to touch and pain sensory testing and also symptoms were recorded with the help of visual analog scale. The mean subjective Visual analog scale (VAS) value had significantly reduced after the surgery and it gradually improved over a period of about 6 months when it became near normal. Sensory testing revealed loss of touch and pain sensation in about 67% of patients following the surgery. The sensation recovered over a variable period of time, with about 95% of patients having normal touch and pain sensation 6 months after the surgery. Majority of patients treated with postaural incision develop sensory loss which is likely to recover in 3–6 months. Till that time patients should be counselled properly and appropriate measures should be taken to avoid any complications of sensory loss.

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  1. Seema R. Gupta

    Present address: , Thane(West), Maharashtra, India

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of ENT, GMERS Medical College, Civil Hospital Campus, Near Pathikasharam, Sector-12, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, 382012, India

    Sanket D. Vakharia & Seema R. Gupta

Authors
  1. Sanket D. Vakharia
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  2. Seema R. Gupta
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Contributions

All authors contributed to study conception and design, data collection and analysis. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Dr. Seema R. Gupta. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Seema R. Gupta.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Institutional Ethical Committee’s permission was obtained prior to the commencement of the study and the study was performed in accordance with the ethical standards as laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments.

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Informed consent was obtained from all the participants of this study.

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Vakharia, S.D., Gupta, S.R. Sensation Loss of Auricle Following Ear Surgery by Post-auricular Incision: Our Experience. Indian J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 74 (Suppl 1), 120–124 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12070-020-01906-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12070-020-01906-w

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